By Scott Schultze, Guest Columnist
This past weekend my partner and love, Brenda Shields, and I went to the Murphy River Walk, and I grabbed my sister, Lisa Hill, on the way. I usually load the kayaks on the pickup if the weather looks like it may cooperate, and since it did, we figured it would be nice to hit the water.
We put in at the ramp located in downtown and headed upriver first. We almost made it to the S turn on River Road, but as the current began to increase and the kayak making no headway, we turned around.
On the way back down river, we were able to kayak close to Murphy First Baptist Church. We enjoyed weaving in and around the many trees nearby that are normally not underwater.
Next up was the Primitive Trail on the River Walk. We enjoyed paddling over the trail just a few feet beneath us, as we reminisced how it looked when the river was down.
Upon hitting the fork in the river, we turned right and paddled up the Valley River. Our mission for the day was to actually see how far upriver we could get.
Our last attempt was two seasons ago when Murphy experienced some substantial rain. That run we made it just past the bridge at Bulldog Drive. This trip we almost made it to the bridge behind the high school, near the Sherwin Williams store.
To be honest, we had hoped to make it to the casino. No, not to gamble but for bragging rights.
The treat for the day was while we were heading upriver. We never dreamed we could kayak the boardwalk and Fisherman’s Loop. Yes, we’ve kayaked around the boardwalk and fisherman’s loop, but this trip we actually took the trail.
We try to make our kayak trips an adventure, exploring the nooks and crannies along the lakes and paddling up river heads while Brenda looks for arrow heads. She can spot them from 20 feet offshore, that is no joke.
We’re not much for floating down river, and do enjoy the paddle itself. Sometimes I get scolded for not paddling, but in my defense I’m usually taking pictures.
Brenda informed me the other day that I need a go-pro. In man brain translation that means, “You’d better get paddling, or else.”
All joking aside, she knows when I’m not helping, as the 13-foot long tandem starts to do circles when I am idle. Darn thing turns like a Jeep pickup.
So, if you’re ever on any of the lakes in Western North Carolina, you’ll never know what beauty and fun we have in our own backyard unless you explore those nooks and crannies.
Just a teaser – if you’ve never paddled Lake Nantahala before, there is a waterfall you can paddle to. It takes about an hour and a half to reach it, so we make it our paddle and half mile hike day.
The writer is a resident of Murphy.